Cost:  $180.00        Class Size: 6

Scent Work 101: Introductory Skills

Unlock your dog’s natural scenting ability in this engaging, skill-building introduction to detection work. This six-week course transforms your dog’s instinct to sniff into a focused, rewarding activity through structured games and progressive training exercises.

Scent detection is suitable for dogs of all breeds, ages, and temperaments. It helps build confidence in shy dogs, provides productive mental and physical outlets for high-energy dogs, and strengthens teamwork and communication between handler and dog. Each session is designed to be both purposeful and enjoyable, keeping dogs motivated while developing real search skills.

Led by a highly experienced instructor, you’ll learn clear training techniques, problem-solving strategies, and foundational skills that support everything from recreational enrichment to future competition goals.

Whether you’re exploring a new hobby or laying the groundwork for sport or professional detection work, this class offers a structured and rewarding place to start.

Enrollment is limited to ensure individual attention — reserve your spot today and experience the satisfaction of working as a true detection team.

Needed Supplies:  8–12 foot lightweight leash, harness, lots of high value treats.  If your dog is HIGHLY motivated by toys (balls, squeakies) over food, please bring two identical toys.

Scent Work 201:  Teamwork

Take your training to the next level with Scent Work 201, a skills-focused course designed to develop you and your dog into a confident, efficient detection team. While your dog continues building odor recognition, this class emphasizes the handler mechanics that separate casual searching from polished, reliable performance.

Handlers will refine critical skills including reward timing, leash handling, pre-search routines, footwork, and overall search strategy. These elements directly influence clarity of communication and help your dog work independently while staying connected to you.

Dogs will formally imprint on a target odor provided by the instructor — typically essential oil of Birch for those interested in nose work competition — with options to discuss alternative or specialty odors based on your goals.

Scent work is truly a partnership sport, with the dog leading the search and the handler learning to read subtle changes in behavior, movement, and breathing. You’ll develop the observational and leash skills needed to support your dog without interfering, creating smoother, faster, and more accurate searches.

Ideal for teams ready to move beyond the basics and build precision, confidence, and competitive readiness.

Needed Supplies:  8–12 foot lightweight leash, harness, lots of high value treats/toy.

Scent Work 301: Introductory Skills

Building on the foundation established in Scent Work 201, this level sharpens the most important skill in detection work: learning to truly read your dog.

Handlers will refine their ability to recognize subtle changes in body language and behavior that indicate when odor has been located. Teams will begin working blind searches, meaning neither handler nor dog knows the hide location. These scenarios build trust, independence, and authentic problem-solving — just like real trial conditions.

The value of a clear, reliable Final Trained Response (FTR), first introduced in earlier levels, becomes essential here. We’ll strengthen indication clarity while addressing common handler pitfalls such as over-handling, second-guessing, or interfering with the dog’s process as you learn to trust your K9 partner.

Each week features multiple searches and increasingly complex odor puzzles, including suspended, elevated, inaccessible, pooling, trapped, and converging scent problems. Environmental distractions are thoughtfully added to develop focus and resilience under pressure.

This class also introduces the core AKC competition elements and prepares teams for trial-style challenges. We’ll discuss how different organizations — including DDT and NACSW — structure their searches, rules, and evaluations so you can confidently choose the path that fits your goals.

Scent Work 301 is often repeated as teams continue building experience, consistency, and titles at the introductory competition levels. It’s where reliability is forged, confidence grows, and teams truly begin to compete.

Needed Supplies:  8–12-foot leash, optional harness, High value treats/toy.

Scent Work 401: Multiple Odors

Scent Work 401 is designed for dedicated teams actively competing or preparing to compete at higher levels across all scent sport organizations. This course is appropriate for handlers whose dogs have earned at least an AKC Novice Level 1 title (or equivalent experience) and are ready to expand both their odor recognition and technical search skills.

Dogs will imprint on additional target odors — Anise and Clove — and begin working combinations of two or more scents within the same search area. Multiple-odor problems require clear discrimination, commitment, and thoughtful handling, raising both the technical and mental demands placed on the team.

Searches become longer, more complex, and strategically layered to build stamina, independence, and problem-solving under pressure. Distractions — environmental, odor-based, and handler-driven — are deliberately incorporated to develop reliability in realistic trial conditions.

Handler development remains a core focus. We’ll continue refining leash management, timing, start-line routines, efficient area coverage, and precise Final Trained Responses (FTRs). Training is individualized to address each team’s specific strengths and weaknesses, ensuring measurable progress and competitive readiness.

This level mirrors the complexity and expectations of upper-level trials in AKC, DDT, NACSW, and similar organizations. It is structured for teams who are serious about titles, consistency, and high-level performance.

Needed Supplies:  8–12-foot leash, optional harness, High value treats/toy

Nose Work 501:  Mastery

Scent Work 501 represents the highest level of training we offer — designed exclusively for experienced, competition-tested teams working at or near the top of their sport. This class is intended for handlers competing at AKC Excellent or Detective levels, NACSW NW3, or equivalent advanced tiers in other organizations.

At this stage, the fundamentals are assumed. Dogs must have a clear, reliable Final Trained Response (FTR), and handlers should be comfortable trusting their dog through complex, independent searches. Training now shifts from skill acquisition to performance refinement under pressure.

Searches are larger, longer, and strategically complex, often featuring multiple unknown hides, blank areas, inaccessible or extremely elevated placements, and challenging airflow conditions. Scenarios are designed to replicate — and frequently exceed — the difficulty of upper-level trial environments.

Teams will work through sophisticated distraction layers including visual, auditory, and competing odor interference while maintaining focus, accuracy, and stamina. Emphasis is placed on decision-making, search strategy, mental endurance, and clean, confident handling when information is limited.

Instruction is highly individualized and student-driven. Each team trains to its specific needs, troubleshooting weaknesses, polishing strengths, and developing the consistency required for podium-level performance.

This is not a fundamentals class — it is a proving ground for serious competitors who want to sharpen their edge, solve harder problems, and perform with confidence when it matters most.

 Needed Supplies:  12-foot light weight leash, optional harness, High Value treats/toy.